1. Field of the Invention
The invention resides in the field of food dispensing machinery and more particularly relates to a multiple mixing and dispensing head for multi-flavored high speed milk shake machines wherein an unflavored comestible base is mixed with one of a plurality of flavor syrups and rapidly dispensed at the point of sale.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Milk shake machines are readily available on the commercial market and well known in the prior patent art. However, recent changes in the food service industry have made the older-style machines inefficient and consequently uneconomical. The rapid proliferation of fast food restaurants has created a need for extremely rapid dispensing of food products. It has also caused an intensely competitive market in which speed of service, quality of product both in taste and appearance, economy of pricing and variety of menu items become revelant factors in the financial feasibility of a restaurant. Additionally, new and stricter restaurant sanitation codes and improved enforcement of these sanitation codes have created a need for improved and simplified food dispensing machinery. The improved mixing and dispensing head for milk shake machines disclosed in this application is specifically directed to overcoming limitations of the prior art devices in satisfying the changed market conditions just mentioned.
Among the variety of devices designed for the same purpose as the present invention two are fully described and known in the prior art. One such dispensing head is disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,276,633, Rahauser, in which a basic multi-flavored unit using an individual mixing chamber and beater for each separate flavor is described.
A refinement of this approach including a specifically adapted beater blade and scraper is revealed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,830,407 issued to Edward Wierlo.
To applicant's knowledge, none of the dispensing heads described in these patents or in other prior art literature utilize a premix chamber wherein the neutral comestible and flavoring are both injected under pressure and partially pre-mixed by a turburlence prior to a final mixing by a flexible shaft beater. As will be described below, such pre-mixing results in a highly homogonized mixture, eliminating streaking of colors and flavors or patches of unmixed flavor and comestible which detract from the appearance and taste of the dispensed product as received and eaten by the consumer.
These prior patents adequately describe the functions of milk shake machines and dispensing heads. The multiple mixing and dispensing head of the present invention represents an improvement over these and other prior art devices in several ways. First, the multiple head apparatus of the present invention does not require a separate mixing beater and dispensing nozzle for each flavor. In the embodiment illustrated there are three mixing beaters and dispensing nozzles, each of which can mix and dispense two flavors. In practice, one mixing beater and dispensing nozzle is equipped with only one flavor injector so that unflavored comestible may be dispensed for the preparation of non-standard flavored milk shakes. This five flavor capability plus the custom flavor option from a single milk shake machine represents a significant improvement in menu variety for fast food restaurant in a competitive market. The applicant knows of no other commercially available milk shake machine with this capability.
Additionally, the design and construction of the multiple mixing and dispensing head as disclosed herein provides the fastest mixing and dispensing apparatus commercially available. Its speed eliminates the need to pre-package milk shakes for later sale at peak hours, thus improving the quality and appearance of the sold product. The multiple head of the present invention permits the mixing and dispensing of two or more milk shakes of different flavors simultaneously. Furthermore, all the mixing and dispensing nozzles are served from a single reservoir or unflavored comestible.
Furthermore, the design and construction of the multiple mixing and dispensing head as disclosed herein is greatly simplified, uses a minimum of parts and is easily disassembled and reassembled for cleaning and sanitary purposes by usual restaurant personnel with no special training.
The multiple mixing and dispensing head for milk shake machines is designed to be used on a variety of machines whose individual components may be described in one or more of the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,052,381; 3,018,614; 3,742,724; 3,267,688; 3,188,826; each of which is owned by the assignee of the present application or a related party.